Five-Day Faculty Seminar

The annual Five-Day Teaching with Writing Seminar offers UMN faculty members a congenial, retreat-like opportunity in which they can focus on course-relevant writing assignments, activities, instruction, and assessments. Based on the premise that writing and text can be defined broadly to include verbal, numeric, figurative, and visualized modes, this seminar is appropriate for instructors across the University's curriculum.
Each participant spends the week focusing on an individual course they teach. We move through a sequence of half-day sessions, identifying course-specific learning goals and logistical exigencies, and, from there, considering modes of writing activity and instruction that support those goals and are both course-relevant and logistically feasible. From there, we look at, develop, and workshop writing assignments and activities as well as approaches to assessing student writing.

By week's end, everyone will have...

Identified a subset of specific writing abilities they expect students to develop/demonstrate (because no one course can do everything!).
Designed (or revised) low-stakes and high-stakes writing assignments that stem from course-specific goals and are appropriate to course venues (in-person, hybrid, online).
Become familiar with strategies for providing students with effective, actionable feedback on their writing.
Considered a variety of approaches to assessing student texts (including peer response, contracts, and reflective self-assessment) in order to identify one that works well in specific course contexts.
Been given access to a site loaded with instructional resources.
Spent five mornings engaged in lively conversation with interesting colleagues from across the disciplines.

Who takes this seminar?

Since 2002, the annual Teaching with Writing seminar has enrolled participants from the following departments:

“Absolutely, one of the best workshops I've attended at the UMN. Excellent teaching strategies that extend beyond writing. I found everything useful! I'm really excited (rather than intimidated) to incorporate more writing into my design courses and now feel I have the tools to do it effectively.”

“Re-framing how I felt about writing in the classroom has changed my perspective from anxiety to excitement.”

“I have never taken any writing or teaching course and I was anxious to get some formal training and new ideas. I have been really pleased with what I have learned! This seminar has given me confidence to continue reducing lectures and increasing discussion and writing-oriented activity.”

“This was the most useful faculty development offering I have ever experienced. It has changed the way I teach and the way I write!”

Seminar participants

Facilitator

Pamela Flash,
Director, Writing Across the Curriculum;
Co-Director, Center for Writing

Questions?

Contact [email protected]

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Who takes this seminar?

Facilitator

Questions?

Writing Across the Curriculum

Affiliation

Contact

2023 Exemplary Enduring
WAC Program Award

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System Campuses

Five-Day Faculty Seminar

Who takes this seminar?

Facilitator

Questions?

Writing Across the Curriculum

Affiliation

Contact

2023 Exemplary Enduring WAC Program Award

Systemwide Footer

System Campuses

2023 Exemplary Enduring
WAC Program Award